


Fate Works in Mysterious Ways

by BooperDooperPooper



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Angst, F/F, F/M, Felibern, Felidetta, Felix is a tsundere, Female My Unit | Byleth, Fernie, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Blue Lions Route, Fluff, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Child Abuse, Romance, crests are meanies
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-31
Updated: 2020-03-19
Packaged: 2021-01-15 05:07:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21247943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BooperDooperPooper/pseuds/BooperDooperPooper
Summary: "Do you want to just...share the bench?" Bernadetta asked, unsure of what she just said. It was so stupid! She was trying to get away from him and now she had just invited him to join her! But why worry? It wasn't like he was gonna join he-"...sure..." Felix said as he sat down, silently smacking himself and asking why he agreed to sit. He was attempting to sit all alone as he ate his food, and now he had to deal with someone who also clearly wanted to be left alone.------------------------------------------------------------------------------In which fate is seen messing around with the two loners of Garreg Mach Monastery when the two meet each other at a bench on a busy day.





	1. The Bench

“Goddess damnit…” Felix muttered to himself upon seeing his current predicament.

It had only been a few days since he had arrived at Garreg Mach Monastery and he was not very enthusiastic about it. While he did find himself rather pleased with the Training Grounds and found himself liking his Professor, Byleth, nothing else was particularly satisfying to him. In fact, he had a massive list of things that REALLY got on his nerves, be it the fact that there was barely anywhere that he could avoid a conversation of some kind or how the people here were generally VERY annoying. What made matters worse was his classmates, all too cheerful and outgoing (save for Dimitri and Dedue, but he had his own problems with them) wanted him to ‘join in on the fun!’ and ‘stop being so gloomy!’ 

It's not that he hated everyone, but they seriously need to learn that he didn’t want to socialize much. And plus, it wasn’t just them; his experience with the other house’s members were far from pleasant, be it forced conversations or pranks.

So how does this all tie to his problems at the moment? Well it was lunchtime and every table was occupied. He didn’t even understand how it got to this point, as the first few days here were perfectly fine due to at least one table being available at this point of time.

He sighed and, with his plate of food in hand, left the lunchroom to peacefully eat elsewhere.

Of course, life is just so cruel at times.

Maybe he could sit by the pond and eat with no one bothering him? Nope, Alois’s loud voice as he talked to Captain Jeralt was more than enough to deter him. Perhaps he could try the Main Hall? Unfortunately not, as it was crowded with far too many people for his comfort. He had hoped his room, the Greenhouse, or the Training Grounds might be places for him to find his sought after solitude, but all of those prohibited him from eating lunch at all.

So he came to the one place where he might be able to eat in peace: the Courtyard.

It became immediately clear that it was his fated spot. Sure, of the three benches one was preoccupied by a bunch of sleeping cats, the other, a sleeping Lindhart, but the one right in the middle practically had his name on it. 

He would soon learn that his name wasn’t the only one present on it, as when he approached the bench someone else had started to do the same.

He looked at his competition with a glare to make them back off, only stopping when he saw who it was.

“Bernadetta?”  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“This can’t be happening to me…” Bernadetta whimpered to herself, looking at the problem at hand.

She REALLY didn’t like it here at the monastery for a multitude of reasons. People always wanted to talk, they were all too nice to her, some students wanted to hit on her, her Professor, Hanneman, kind of scared her, and so much more! She couldn’t even happily stay in her room, as so many of her classmates were just so...pushy and energetic!

Of course she didn’t hate a single member of her group, it’s just that they knew literally NO boundaries when it came to interacting with her. Heck, even the ones that didn’t push her to do stuff had their own things that made her want to stay away from them (naimly Hubert and the absolutely horrifying aura that he emitted). Even other house members terrified her, but at least they didn’t try to make her leave her room for the most part.

So of course she was going to have a problem sitting when every table was jam-packed with tons of students all socializing. It was practically what hell would look like if Bernadetta were to ever end up there.

“All right Bernie, guess you gotta find somewhere else to sit.” She grumbled to herself as she swiftly left the Mess Hall in search for a place where she belonged. 

Fate was really cruel to her…

She would have made a beeline straight towards her room, but she remembered that eating lunch there was prohibited, so her best option was out. The Greenhouse was the exact same story, making her lose another place for her to find peace. Eating by the pond wasn’t too bad of an idea at first as Alois didn’t terrify her one bit; however, Captain Jeralt REALLY scared her. The Main Hall was just WAY too crowded, the short girl retreating moments after witnessing the sheer amount of people there.

She eventually went to the one place that she hoped might have no one: the Courtyard.

What a great idea it was, as there was a bench all alone right there! She didn’t care for the cat and Lindhart sleeping on their respective benches, the one in the middle was all hers!

Unfortunately it really wasn’t, as someone else had reached the bench as soon as she had. The person had glared at her, making her flinch violently and almost drop her food.

Upon looking at the person again, she realized who it was.

“F-Felix?”  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The two stood still in an awkward bit of silence, neither too sure of what their next course of action they should take. It was absolutely silent, save for Lindhart’s snoring, until Felix finally broke the silence.

“I’ll just go sit somewhere else.” He said with and upset sigh, getting ready to walk away. He always found Bernadetta to be a rather odd girl, what with her fear of everything and over the top reactions, he thought he would hate her right away...yet he couldn’t deny that he can relate to her in the fact that he absolutely hates company.

“N-No, you can take the seat! I-I was getting in your way, sorry.” Bernadetta apologized before trying to make an escape. She had always thought of Felix as a terrifying person, but one that was relatable due to him wanting to be left alone all the time. Still, she found him rather scary.

“You weren’t so just shut up and take the damn seat.” The swordsman said to the small archer, hoping she’d do as she was told so that he could search for a new seat.

“I was! J-Just take the bench a-and sit, I’ll find somewhere else to sit!” Bernie said, hoping the intimidating loner would take her offer so that she could go find a seat.

The argument between the two of who should take the seat would go on for a few more minutes before the two of them finally found a compromise.

"Do you want to just...share the bench?" Bernadetta asked, unsure of what she just said. It was so stupid! She was trying to get away from him and now she had just invited him to join her! But why worry? It wasn't like he was gonna join he-

"...sure..." Felix said as he sat down, silently smacking himself and asking why he agreed to sit. He was attempting to sit all alone as he ate his food, and now he had to deal with someone who also clearly wanted to be left alone.

'She’s gonna ask me something any second now, I can feel it…' Felix anxiously thought to himself, not in the mood for any type of conversation, especially after the annoying dispute the two had had. He didn’t even spare her a glance, as that would make it look like he was wanting to talk.

'Oh goddess he’s going to say something to me, I know it! He must be mad after that argument! I can’t handle this pressure!' Bernadetta nervously thought to herself as she tried to avoid any form of communication, not wanting to even look at him in fear that he would say something. 

Both of them waited for what they believed to be the inevitable moment when the other would try and force a conversation…

But that moment never came.

Eventually the two finished their respective lunches, walking back together to the Mess Hall while being careful not to be seen together by anyone they knew. Once they reached their destination they deposited their dishes and went their own ways.

'...that wasn’t so bad, I guess…' Felix thought to himself as he returned to the Training Grounds, lost in his thoughts as he made his way there.

'...huh, that was actually nice…' Bernadetta thought to herself as she withdrew into her room, not sure how to feel about her first interaction the intimidating swordsman.


	2. Head Chef Challenge

“Again with this shit…” Felix muttered to himself as he looked around the Mess Hall in a similar fashion to the previous day.

Once again the entire place was packed, each table filled with too many people than he could tolerate for even a few minutes. Actually, it might be even worse than the previous day, as he couldn’t even see a table that wasn’t packed to the brim with loud, obnoxious students. It was probably due to this day being the Head Chef Challenge, but that was only a theory. He made an attempt to find a place near someone he could tolerate, be it Byleth, Ingrid, Annette, or anyone who wouldn't mind not speaking to him. However, they were surrounded by the people that made him hate lunchtime in the first place.

After a few moments, the tsundere groaned to himself and decided to look around the place for somewhere peaceful to eat his food for the second day in a row. With how yesterday was, he was hoping that this day would've been a different story.

Turns out fate REALLY didn’t like him. He didn’t know what he had done to deserve such merciless actions to be bestowed upon him, but it must have been horrible for him to be punished with this amount of bad luck…

Once again Alois was making a ruckus as he spoke with Captain Jeralt, the Main Hall was absolutely crowded, and all the other places that he thought might be great for eating at - his room, The Greenhouse, and the Training Grounds - were still off limits due to the food he held in his hands.

Once again, he had to resort to the final place he could think of: The Courtyard.

When he got there, he was given another surprise that it was the exact same situation as before, with the cats on one bench and Lindhart on the other.

He started to suspect fate brought him to this exact bench for a reason, but would’ve dismissed the thought as stupid.

He would’ve, had he not noticed the same girl with purple hair approach the same bench at the same time as he did...

———————————————————————————————————

“Why does the Goddess hate me…?” Bernadetta whined to herself as she surveyed the Mess Hall for a table to sit alone.

Unfortunately for her the place was even more jammed than the previous day, much to the small archer’s dismay. She made an attempt to look around for the few people that she felt at least a bit comfortable around - Byleth, and Dorothea - but she knew she would never be able to tolerate the amount of people that crowded around two of the most popular people here.

A couple of minutes later and the recluse was back on the hunt for a comfortable sitting spot where no one would disturb her. Surely yesterday was a bad day and today would be the day that she would be at peace!

...she really needed to pray to the Goddess for forgiveness for whatever terrible deed she had done, as the search didn’t go any smoother than the previous day…

Her room and the Greenhouse were still completely off-limits during any meal of the day, Captain Jeralt still absolutely terrified her enough to avoid sitting at the pond, and the sheer amount of people that settled down in the Main Hall was enough to make her dart away in moments, just like the last time…

That led her back to the spot she had occupied the last day: The bench at The Courtyard.

Did the Goddess intend for her to be brought back to this place for another meal? She couldn’t deny the possibility, as the two benches on the sides were filled by the cats and Lindhart once more.

Bernie was hoping her hypothesis was incorrect, but the sight of the same taller man heading to the same bench at the same time she did only seemed to support it…

———————————————————————————————————

After arguing for a shorter period of time, the two found themselves sitting side-by-side once more, both looking at their plate as to prevent any eye contact from occurring.

Both of their plates were covered by a cloth as to not spoil what dish they had received that day. It could be absolutely anything on the menu and the students had no way of returning it.

The two loners proceeded to take their respective cloths off at the same time, also groaning at the same time after they had seen what fate had for them on this cruel day.

In Bernadetta’s hands laid the Super-Spicy Fish Dango. Just the smell of it alone was enough to make the girl flinch back, the overwhelming spiciness being far too much for someone like her to tolerate for even a few moments.

Felix was cursed with a similar fate in a different way. In his hands laid the Sweet Bun Trio, the scent of it making Felix act in a similar fashion to the recluse that sat right beside him, the two finally sharing a glance at one another.

“...I assume you dislike spicy food?” Felix asked, making a very obvious observation based on how Bernadetta refused to move her head anywhere near the plate resting in her hands.

“Y-Yeah, I don’t...and you don’t like sweet stuff?” Bernie responded. It was too obvious to see when Felix as glaring at the food given to him with absolute disgust.

“Yeah…” He said, the two eyeing each other’s plate with envy. “...you wanna trade?” The swordsman asked, hoping that the recluse would be willing to rid him of the product of his bad luck.

“...o-only if you want to!” She said with haste, clearly being famished and in need of Sweet Buns that she desired oh-so much.

With that, the two exchanged their plates and enjoyed their new obtained meals, now satisfied with the more fitting taste for the both of them. The two didn’t speak to one another for the rest of their time together, as there was no need in doing so. If there was no need to talk, then why talk in the first place?

Soon enough the two would finish their respective meals and go back to the dining hall to deposit their plates before splitting off again, making sure to avoid anyone else on their way there and after the two split off, much like yesterday.

And much like yesterday, the two seemed oddly pleased after lunch again…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait between the two chapters! I had family issues I had to deal with, but now I'm finally back! 
> 
> This chapter was rushed since it had been a while since I updated, so sorry for the drop in quality and lack in length. I'll try to get the next chapter out soon due to this! Anyways, I hope you enjoy!


	3. Sweet-Tooth Week

“Dammit…” Felix said with groan once again as he stood in the Dining Hall once more. This time, however, he faced an entirely different dilemma than before.

It had been a week since his first run-in with the resident archer of the Black Eagle’s House during lunch by now. Ever since that first interaction the two had made it a habit of sitting next to one another. Of course, very few words were spoken between the two, but they both seemed to prefer it that way. It was nice not having to eat in the loud room he used to eat in, even if he did admittedly enjoy the time spent with his classmates. 

Anytime the two did talk, the discussion took less than two minutes before ending. Usually a question put forward by the recluse and an answer given by the swordsman. If he didn’t want to answer then Bernadetta wouldn’t pry for an answer; she’d just leave it at that and return to eating her food, something he appreciated considering how much people push for a question at times. 

So no, it wasn’t the lack of places to sit that irked him. No, it was the fact that it was Sweet-Tooth Week.

Sure it wasn’t annoying for the last 6 days (each day there were plenty of other options that weren't sweets). However, he was too caught up in training that he was a bit late to lunch, which, in turn, caused him to arrive when all other options had been swept clean. 

Felix sighed as he accepted his fate and went to grab something, opting to get a Peach Sorbet. He’d probably end up giving it to Bernadetta since he knew she enjoyed it and head into town later to purchase something. Sure, it cut into his budget, but he’d be happy to do so if it meant not having to endure the overbearing taste of any food item present.

After managing to evade any type of conversation, he made his way to the bench, surprised when Bernadetta was nowhere to be seen. She was usually the first one here, so for her to be late when he was already running late was rather confusing. He just summed it up to her losing track of time and running late as well before he took a seat on the bench, placing his dreadful meal off to the side for the time being. It wasn’t anything to be concerned over, and even if she was running extremely late he’d just go to her room and remind her.

So the loner sat in silence for the next five minutes, waiting for the recluse to appear. Sure, it was nice and quiet, but he found himself preferring to not eat alone. It felt slightly isolating, something he thought would be comfortable for him. Turns out even he didn’t enjoy being alone.

He wouldn’t need to ponder on that too much longer as he spotted the purple-haired girl approaching the bench the two shared. He felt a slight feeling of relief upon seeing her, but also confused upon seeing the dish that rested in her hands. It was steak, and from how she was holding the plate away from her face he deduced it was likely that it was spiced up. Why would she have that on a day full of sweets, something that she genuinely enjoyed.

“S-Sorry for being late!” Bernadetta said as Felix picked up the Sorbet for the girl to sit. Upon her sitting, the swordsman found his hypothesis to be true; the meat looked to be freshly-cooked beef that had been cooked and seasoned with the intention of being spicy.

“It’s fine...” He said as he eyed the meat in her hands, trying to deduce what she was attempting to figure out what she was doing with something like that before giving up. “I thought you hated spicy food…” Felix stated, looking at the recluse in slight confusion.

“O-Oh, I still do! This is...for you…” Bernadetta said as she held the plate out for Felix to take, looking away as she did. “I saw that this was the last not-sweet dish left and, uh, got it for you since I know that you dislike sweets!” 

Felix felt...kind of touched? It was an extremely kind thing for her to do, and they had only known each other for a week. Hell, they didn’t even really know each other, just little details that came up in their rare conversations.

“I-If you don’t want it that’s fine! You’re probably not hungry for it anyway!” Bernadetta said, snapping Felix out of his thoughts as she started her usual self-doubting. “Gosh darn it Bernie, you can't do anything right! Now he’s gonna ha-“

“Thank you, Bernadetta.” Felix said as he took the plate from the shy girl, not wanting to hear her mutter that nonsense to herself. He then handed the Peach Sorbet to her. “I intended on giving this to you, so here.”

“O-Oh, thank you!” She said, smiling a shy smile as she took it from his hand and dug into the meal. 

“She seems especially hungry today…” Felix thought to himself before he took the first bite of his meal. The moment he chewed on the steak he was hit with a burst of excellent flavor and texture. It was juicy, tender, and loaded with the spicy flavor that he enjoyed so much. He never remembered the kitchen of the Garreg Mach ever producing something of this quality in the bit of time that he spent there. This meal was leagues above what he had tasted on the regular day basis.

“...d-do you like it?” Bernadetta asked shyly. She seemed to really want to know whether it was to his liking or not for whatever reason.

“It’s pretty good, a lot better than what the Dining Hall usually puts out.” He said, not hesitating as he took his next bite of the food. “Did you really get it from there?”

Upon looking at her, he saw that the archer’s eyes seemed to sparkle for a moment before she looked away. “Y-Yeah, it came from the Dining Hall!” She quickly responded.

It was evident that something was off with that answer. He had probably arrived at the Dining Hall later than she did considering her story of the delectable steak being the last meal that wasn’t a sweet, yet Bernadetta had arrived later than he did. Plus, the steak was piping hot, and the girl seemed to be avoiding the origins of the food…

The loner didn’t bring up his thoughts as he turned his attention back to the meal, not wanting to make her uncomfortable despite her obvious lies. She had done something nice for him and got him this steak, so why would he interrogate her? 

Upon him not pushing any further, he swore he heard her sigh a breath of relief, which just supported his suspicions.

The two soon ate in silence as they usually did, enjoying their respective meals. No more words were spoken until the two finished their meals and dropped their trays off at the Dining Hall.

“Again, thank you Bernadetta.” Felix said before heading off to the Training Grounds in haste, making sure he wasn’t seen with the recluse. Last thing he wanted was for someone like Sylvain to tease him about hanging out with a girl in private.

Before Bernie could say anything the swordsman had vanished. She sighed and headed to her room. “I hope he doesn’t find out I made it for him…”

\-------------------------------------------------------------

Felix decided to wrap-up his training for the day upon seeing the sky starting to get dark. He needed to get cleaned and have dinner with the rest of the Blue Lions as Dimitri had called for all of them to get together to discuss how they would approach the upcoming mock-battle. He started making his way out of the Training Grounds…

“Did you know that Bernadetta cooked?” Said a familiar female voice. 

He didn’t know why, but his instinct told him to listen in on this conversation despite having no reason to. _“Should I really?”_ Felix asked himself in his thoughts. It was a useless waste-of-time, plus the risk of being caught would just make this all of bigger waste-of-time. In the end, though, he decided to listen to his gut feeling and just hid around the corner.

“Which one was she again? I don’t think I’ve gotten the opportunity to meet her yet.” Asked another familiar female voice, said voice revealed to be Mercedes with the latter being Annette.

“She’s the one that always shut her in her room.” The shorter girl responded.

“I saw her cooking up something when I was on lunch duty, I think it was steak.” The orange-haired girl spoke again. “It was kind of weird.”

“What made it weird?”

“Well, for the past week, she always looked so ecstatic when she got something sweet to eat, so to make something like that all of the sudden is just, well, strange.” The mage said, seeming to try to come up with a reason for it.

Mercedes giggled before speaking. “Oh my, maybe she found someone she liked and decided to make something for them!” The priest said, clapping her hands together as she came to her conclusion.

“Aww, that’s so cute!” Annette said, excited upon hearing the idea of love already blooming. “I wonder who it is!” 

“Well maybe it could be-“ Was the last that Felix could hear before the two started to walk off. He didn’t pursue, though, as he had heard all he needed to, plus more than he wished. 

_“Bernadetta made that for me? Why?”_ The now confused tsundere thought to himself as he slowly made his way to the bathhouse. _“We met a week ago and barely know each other…”_

**_“-maybe she found someone she liked-“_** Mercedes’s voice echoed in his head, the swordsman trying to shake the thought out of his head. "There was no way that was it, right? She wasn’t good at making friends from what he could tell, so maybe that was her way of doing it?"

_"Why am I even thinking of this?"_ Felix thought to himself as he hit his head to try and and stop thinking about it…

...he found himself lost in thought during the strategy meeting of the Blue Lions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for another long wait for the next chapter, I had more personal issues to work through before I could make this chapter.
> 
> That being said, I hope you all enjoy it :)


	4. The First Mock Battle

“Damn that boar…" Felix muttered quietly to hinself as he reflected upon the situation he was forced into.

Today was the day of the mock battle between all three of the classes. Each side is required to have their respective professor, house leader, and a choice of three other students. It was a pretty simple setup to be honest, but it was complex at the same time; each side had to be careful in their last three students and consider their possible opponents on the field before reaching a finished team.

Felix had been dragged into multiple strategy meetings with the rest of his class during any meal they shared. While he didn't mind discussing strategy with his fellow classmates, he did mind one thing: the fact that it stole his lunchtime with Bernadetta.

He had been meaning to thank her for the meal, but he never got the chance to do so. Anytime he tried to sneak away, either Sylvain or Ingrid managed to catch him and bring him to the meeting, despite his complaints. He felt kind of bad for leaving her there all alone considering her constant talking-down of herself. She'd obviously be quick to blame herself and apologize a lot, something he didn't look forward to.

Of course the swordsman could always knock on her door to apologize, but doing it randomly in the day for anyone to see? No thank you, he was more than smart enough to realize the chain of events that that could set off; if rumors start to spread that he approached Bernadetta's room, then no doubt either Annette or Mercedes would hear. If either of them hear, they would realize that the steak Bernadetta had made was for him. If they found that out, they would definitely think the two were dating. And if that leaked out and somehow got to someone like Sylvain…

The dark-haired boy wasn't going to take a single chance at that, even if he admittedly kind of missed having lunch with the recluse. 

However, that wasn't the thing that pissed him off at the moment. What truly irked him was that he wasn't chosen to fight in the battle.

Sure, from a tactical perspective the Professor proved why him going in the fight wasn't a good idea, what with his lackluster defense. He couldn't find a single argument as to why he should go in, as taking Annette, Dedue, and Ashe was the clearly superior choice. That didn't change the fact that he was upset that he didn't get to participate in a fight like this, though. The thought that he could be on that field fighting worthy opponents was too infuriating, even if it was admittedly childish to throw a tantrum over something like this.

So of course he has to sit in the viewing area that was situated in a tower nearby. The area had raised, tiered rows of benches with small stairways providing access to the horizontal rows of seats. There were two entrances, each leading to a set of stairs.

watching from above as Byleth led the Blue Lions to battle. The fight began right away as the Professor prevented Lorenz from attacking Annette as she and Dedue took on Ignatz, leaving Dorothea to the combined effort of Ashe and Dimitri. 

The swordsman sighed as he looked around for a place to sit. Unfortunately, the seats next to both Sylvain and Ingrid were already stolen by the members of the Golden Deer and Black Eagles that weren't fighting on the field.   
Before he could look for another spot to sit, he realized something that should've been rather obvious to him from the start: Bernadetta wasn't with them.

Looking around, he couldn't seem to find her anywhere on any of the benches. There was no way she could have ditched the event, right? Felix soon found himself walking up the stairs to answer that question, not finding her inside the tower as well. Upon looking at the other empty doorway he finally found the small girl, sitting down on the top of the stairs and out of sight from everyone. He was kind of impressed that she had found a way to hide herself so quickly.

The loner soon began to approach the other loner, having no where else to sit in comfort.

\---

_"Oh Bernie, how could you go and screw it up so quickly?!"_ The recluse thought to herself as she sat on top of the stairway, not caring much for the battle at hand.

It had been a week since she had seen Felix at lunch, as he had missed it every single day after she had made that meal for him. The shy girl would soon learn that she didn't like eating her lunches alone, enjoying the comforting presence of the much taller boy. Sure, they didn't talk all that much, but being next to him made her feel kind of...safe? Something close to that feeling she gets when she's in her room. It was weird considering she barely knew the guy, only knowing that he loved to train, enjoyed spicy food, and hated anything sweet. It might've been because he was rather tall compared to her, or maybe it was that he was intimidating yet kind-hearted? Either way, she doesn't even know why she enjoys his company so much. 

Yet here she was, yearning to hang out with the swordsman again. He was the closest thing she's had to a friend in a decade, so losing him had hit her way harder than she thought it would. Sure, there were other friendly people like Petra and Dorothea, but they didn't give off that aura that just made her feel safe.

She didn't know why the boy had randomly stopped coming but she was quick to blame something as the cause for his sudden departure of their routine, that something unfortunately being herself. 

_"D-Did he not like the steak and hate me for getting it for him afterwards?! That must be it!"_ She wrongly thought to herself, hugging her knees to her chest as she became more and more upset with her actions. _"M-Maybe he didn't like me to begin with and just pitied me! How could someone as good as him enjoy spending time around me?"_ She kept thinking, upset that she botched her first attempt at getting a friend so badly. _"Now he'll want to avoid me for the rest of his life!"_

"Mind if I sit here?" Said a voice that she thought would be absent for the rest of her life. 

\---

"H-HYAAAAH?!" The girl squeaked and jumped up, turning quickly to see Felix standing there with an amused look one his face. "F-Felix?! Wh-What are yo-Why are y-" Bernadetta tried to say as she faced the tsundere, her inability to form a sentence being cut off soon after it started.

"Shut up, you're going to make everyone know that we're sitting here." Felix interrupted, sitting right next to the girl. He took a moment to look past the doorway to see if anyone had heard the scream, sighing in relief when he saw that they were all too busy either talking amongst each other or watching the Professor, who had managed to take Lorenz down with little difficulty.

"S-Sorry…" The girl said, facing away from him as she thought of what to say. _"Should I apologize? Should I beg for his forgiveness for being so irritating? Should I-"_

"Sorry I haven't been able to show up during lunch." Her thoughts were interrupted by Felix. She was kind of thrown off at the moment. Felix had just apologized to her! This isn't what was supposed to happen, it was her fault he stayed away, right?

She faced him and again to speak. "N-No, I'm s-sorry for being such a nuscia-"

"Shut up, I don't want to hear any of that nonsense you keep spouting about yourself." The swordsman quickly interrupted, not wanting to hear the girl talk herself down so much. It was both annoying and made him feel bad, so nothing that he wanted business with. "I have no problem spending my time at lunch with you, so don't start again." He said with a stern look, making the girl nod as she squirmed around a bit uncomfortably.

"I-If I'm not the problem...then what stopped you from coming? I-If I can ask that!" Bernie asked, turning away again, scared that it was something she played some role in. She hugged her knees back up to her chest, scared at the infinitely possible reasons that could in some way involve her.

"I was forced to attend some strategy meetings with the rest of the Blue Lions. The boar had Sylvain and Ingrid stop me from sneaking out of the Dining Hall at any point of time." Felix explained, looking at the battle occurring as he spoke. 

It seemed that Professor Byleth and the accompanying Blue Lions had cleared the previous opponents that blocked their path. Soon enough They began cutting into the area where the Black Eagles resided, basically engaging in battle with both of the classes at the same time. A risky endeavor, but with Claude and Hilda using the trees as easy cover, it might not be too bad of a decision.

"Oh...I see." The girl said before exhaling a sigh of relief, glad that she had no role in Felix's absences...unless he was lying! But that thought died down faster than it came, as she had come to know that the fellow loner wasn't one to lie. 

"I probably should've told you after lunch, so sorry about that as well." Felix apologized again, thankful to see the girl slowly becoming more comfortable around him again. It was annoying to see her so afraid all the time, seeing her back to how she felt around him when they sat on the bench was a bit satisfying.

"I-It's ok, really!" Bernadetta responded, accepting the apology right away. The conversation wasn't going how she had planned at all, but she didn't really care. She managed to somehow keep her first friend in years for more than a week long! "I-If you did approach my door, someone might've gotten the wrong idea and start talking." The recluse said with a small smile on her face, her voice clearer than before now that her fear of being hated by Felix was no longer plaguing her.

"Exactly why I decided to hold off on that." The tsundere responded in acknowledgement, smirking a bit as he saw the girl finally smiling again. It was a nice smile, one that put him at ease in a moment. It was weird to him that such a smile was always hidden from plain sight by a door due to the fear the small girl always seemed to experience. Why would she hide such a nice thi-

Felix's eyes widened before he shook his head a bit and pretended to focus on the match at hand. _"What am I doing? Why would I even think about her in that way?!"_ He thought to himself as he tried to kill any further thoughts he might have. _“Dammit, I’m thinking like Sylvain now.”_

“Oh yeah, I wanted to properly thank you for the steak.” Felix said as he tried to keep his mind from going back. Maybe a random conversation change might fix it?

“No...problem? I thought you already thanked me for that?” Bernadetta asked in confusion, oblivious to her friend’s newfound knowledge.

“Well I thanked you for getting it for me, I didn’t thank you for being the one who cooked it.” The swordsman said, watching in slight amusement as the archer's eyes widened in slight panic.

"Wh-What're you talking about?" Bernie fruitlessly attempted to make herself look oblivious to Felix's accusation. She knew very well it was true, but hoped that she could find a way to convince him otherwise. "I-I got it in the Dining Hall b-before you arri-"

"Annette saw you cooking a steak." Felix interrupted, putting the girl in a situation where she couldn't deny any claims. "Before you ask how I know, I happened to overhear her talking to Mercedes the other day."

"Sh-She saw th-that?!" The recluse asked, eyes widened in horror. _"Oh no, if she saw and was talking to Mercedes about it, then she might've told someone else about it! If someone else heard about it, then they might tell other people! Everyone will be on to me! Then someone might find out who I gave the steak to, and then they will-" _

"If you're worried that either of them told other people, I can assure you that they haven't." The swordsman said, knowing very well that she was overreacting in her. "No one is talking about it, so you can stop panicking."

"...a-are you sure?" She asked, sighing in relief as she saw him nod. "Thank Sothis, if rumors spread, then we wouldn't be able to talk without anyone thinking w-we're..." The girl tried to say before she felt her face heating up from the thought, prompting her to turn away.

“Yeah, that would’ve been a big waste of time.” Felix agreed, thankful that Annette and Mercedes hadn't started any rumors. Sure, most people wouldn't care about rumors, but rumors meant the person got more attention, and to the two of them it's basically just torture. "So why did you lie to me? Before you start, I'm not offended or angry at you."

"O-Oh, it was because, well...I-I thought you would find my hobby stupid and useless." Bernadetta admitted, hugging her legs closer to her chest. "To be honest, you're my first friend in a long time, and I didn't want you to hate me."

"...it's not a bad hobby to be honest." The swordsman said before giving the shy girl a small smile. "Plus, you would need to do something actually bad to make me not want to be friends with you, so don't worry about that." After saying that, without thinking, he put his hand on the girl's head and rubbed her hair.

Bernie didn't expect the sudden head rub, but she didn't flinch away from it, not really minding her hair getting messier. "Y-You mean that you think of me as a friend?" She asked with a big grin on her face. 

The sudden smile almost made him give out one of his own, the boy barely containing himself. “Isn’t that obvious at this point?” He teased, messing with her hair a bit more before realizing what he was doing and withdrawing his hand.

“...thank you.” The archer said quietly, Felix barely catching the thanks over the loud announcement. “I just needed to hear that from you.” She was happy that the swordsman wasn't fed up with her or anything. She knew it wasn't a lie; his words were genuine with no doubt. 

Felix stood up and extended a hand to Bernadetta. "We should get out of here before anyone sees us together." He said, the small smile still on his face. He'll smile just a bit if it makes her comfortable.

Bernadetta looked at the hand. "...yeah, we should." She said before taking a hold of Felix's hand, giving a small smile herself as she was helped up. 

Soon enough the two began walking out of the tower in a bit of haste, trying to get out before any of the others would be able to see them walking alongside one another. 

_"I guess the Goddess does like me, huh?"_ Both of them thought at the same time as they went their separate ways, heading to their respective groups.


	5. The Coming Battle

“Dammit…” Felix muttered to himself as he walked through the hallways of the Monastery, heading towards the Courtyard. 

Today was the day that the Blue Lion class was to accomplish it’s monthly mission: rout a group of bandits that had been causing trouble in nearby villages recently. Of course it was a job that the Knights of Seiros could casually get done, but he was glad and worried that it was turned into a training experience for the class. He could finally have the chance to hone his blade against something that wasn’t a training dummy that fell apart in a few minutes, and the feeling was exhilarating.

On the other hand, he had to keep an eye on Dimitri. The last time he had been tasked with putting down a group causing trouble alongside the future king was horrifying, to say the very least. He had seen how one of his closest friends from his childhood had slaughtered each and every one of those people without a shred of mercy, and it still haunted him to this day. He needed to watch the blonde-haired man, as the last thing he wanted was for the prince to turn into a wild boar on his own classmates. The very idea of seeing him murder Sylvain, Ingrid, Annette, or any of their friends was more than enough to put the swordsman on edge.

Felix shook the thought out of his head, deciding to focus on his current predicament: lunch.

There wasn't anything wrong with lunch at all. If anything it had become an overall better experience due to Bernadetta’s fear of him slowly dying. While he used to prefer a completely silent lunch, he found that he didn’t mind talking with the Black Eagle student, actually taking to the opportunity to get to know her better. He learned that, despite her constantly talking about how she’s extremely untalented, she was actually quite talented at a lot of things, ranging from knitting to painting to gardening to even playing an instrument. It really did impress him, especially since she was surprisingly good at archery as well from what he’s heard from Ingrid (who had apparently forced the girl out of her room by kicking her door down). He’s also been pretty happy that his friend had a mutual enjoyment of cats, even if he didn’t admit it to her.

So having lunch wasn’t usually a problem until today. The cause behind his minor feeling of despair was that his class had to pack their own lunches for the road, something that he had completely forgotten to do. He was so caught up with his training that his mind blanked on getting some food for the journey there. The trip to the Red Canyon was to be a decently long one and they were to depart soon, giving him no time to request any food from the Dining Hall. Every shop that he would have time to go to was packed with nothing but sweets, something that was generally enjoyed by many who resided in Garreg Mach; he was not part of that group. 

Knowing that his trip to town would be pointless, he decided to accept the consequences of his negligence and go hungry, hoping that it didn’t distract him too much. He might ask Ingrid for some extra since she might bring more than she needed.

So why was he heading over to the Courtyard? To say goodbye to his purple-haired friend, of course. He knew that she had to go on her class’s monthly mission as well, something about training with the knights from what he heard from Ashe. It was a relief to him, not due to his class getting the best experience out of the three (though that was partially the case), but because Bernadetta would be safe from any lethal harm. The idea of the shy girl that so happily talked about carnivorous plants being harmed in any matter by a lowly bandit with him being unable to protect her was an extremely unpleasant thought, as she was too innocent to deserve something like that (so were Annette and Ashe, but he would be there to protect those two any time they headed out on the battlefield). 

He shook the thought out of his head as he entered the Courtyard, thankful that his fellow loner wasn’t going to experience what he worried about. Her class departed later than his and he knew she’d want to say goodbye at the very least. While he saw it as a bit childish to say goodbye to someone that she was very likely to see later in the day, the miniscule chance that he might meet his demise on the trip undoubtedly plagued the girl’s mind, considering how negative she was when she spoke of the future. 

The swordsman soon arrived at the room of the recluse, knocking on the door of it. “Bernadetta, it’s Felix.” He called quietly, not wanting anyone to overhear him. He didn’t want any rumors to start that the two were dating, as that would make life hell for the both of them. When no response came, he knocked again, wondering whether she was in at the moment or not. He was somewhat disappointed when she didn’t open the door, knowing he had to go soon. It seemed that he wasn’t going to be able to say goodbye to the recluse.

As he turned around, from the corner of his eye he saw the girl he had been looking for, carrying both a container covered by a white cloth and an iron shield. Ignoring that slight feeling of relief he felt upon seeing the girl before he left and the amusement of seeing the girl’s face turning into a smile, he walked towards the archer to speak to her.

\--------

_”I wonder if he’ll like it…”_ Bernadetta thought to herself as she made her way to the Courtyard, her hands loaded with a container and an iron shield. 

The recluse had overheard a conversation between Ingrid and Sylvain that the Blue Lions had to leave pretty early in the day if they wanted to get to the Red Canyon before it got dark and that they had to pack lunches for the way. Normally, this would’ve been an irrelevant piece of information for the Black Eagle student. However, it was now something she was thankful to have overheard due to her newfound friendship with the swordsman that resided in the class.

Felix was the third person she had become to be comfortable around in the Monastery, the first two being Professor Byleth and Alois. At least with those two it made sense the prior had some type of aura that made every student like the teacher, and the latter reminded her of her late uncle. Felix though? She couldn’t figure out what it was that made him so easy to be around. 

But that didn’t matter to her, as she was more than happy to have made a friend after all those lonely years of being too afraid to try after the incident with her first friend. He made her lunches far less lonely than before, the archer finding him to be surprisingly kind to her as he did not show many, if any at all, signs of being annoyed as he listened to her prattle on about useless stuff like her various hobbies or how her day had been going. She had learned a bit more about the boy as well; he was, surprisingly enough, younger than her, his only family left was his father (he didn’t mention how his mother or brother had died and she wasn’t going to push him since he seemed rather uncomfortable when speaking about his family), and she suspected him of having a fondness of cats from how a small smile found its way onto his face the moment she had started to speak of the cute fluff balls that populated Garreg Mach. 

Bernie sighed as she felt her arms start getting tired from carrying the shield. The girl had been looking around the entire Monastery for the swordsman, knowing the Blue Lions hadn’t left yet from seeing Dedue in the Greenhouse not too long ago. The girl had been looking for him ever since she left the Dining Hall, thankful that she overheard Sylvain’s joke about Felix having forgotten his lunch. She knew the boy often tried to go through less populated paths in order to avoid his friends constantly pestering him (she did the same after all), but even those were unoccupied by her friend. He wasn’t in his room and, upon checking it for the third time, she couldn't see him anywhere in the Training Grounds. Finally, after some time, she decided to try and catch him alone when he was called down to the Marketplace before his class departed, the small girl being unable to tolerate the weight of the shield as she made her way back to her room.

Fortunately for the archer, any plan she had was to be totally forgotten as she saw her target walking away from her room. _ “What’s he doing in front of my room? And how long has he been waiting there?” _ Bernadetta thought to herself, stopping in her tracks as she thought to herself. _”Did he want to see me before he went off?”_ Her thoughts were met with the same fate as her earlier plans as they faded out of her mind once she locked eyes with the young man, a smile sneaking onto her face without her realizing it. She soon started moving towards Felix, happy to finally have the weights on her arms removed from them.

\------

“Weird seeing you out of your room.” Felix teased as he came face to face with the small girl. He didn’t know why, but he had taken a bit of satisfaction as he saw the girl pout and blush a bit. 

“Weird seeing you out of the Training Grounds.” Bernadetta teased back before giggling when he rubbed her hair, the girl not missing the smirk that edged its way onto his face. She couldn’t remember when Felix had started messing with her hair, not that it mattered since the simple gesture was comforting and made the boy all the easier to be around. Of course, she didn’t mind her hair getting messed with, as she never really messed around with it. “So, what were you doing outside my room just now? I thought you didn’t wanna be seen near it?”

“Don’t worry, I made sure to check no one else was around to see us.” He responded to the first question, looking around again to double check that no one would catch the two together. Fortunately, it seemed that no one but the dogs and cats were here. “And I came to say goodbye since we’re going to be leaving soon.” 

“Oh, then I came at the perfect time!” Bernie said before handing the swordsman the container covered in a cloth. “I packed you some lunch for your trip since you forgot to!” She said with a big smile on her face. The recluse couldn’t contain her happiness of being useful to her friend in any way possible.

“...wait, how did yo-” Felix started to ask before being interrupted by the purple-haired girl.

“I overheard Sylvain talking about you forgetting to get yourself lunch, so I made it for you.” The archer said, her smile not wavering. 

“Ah. Well either way, thank you Bernadetta. You saved me from going hungry today.” Felix said, rubbing her head again with his free hand, this time more slowly. The blush that appeared on the girl’s face was an indication that she appreciated the praise. It was pretty easy to read the girl at times, but he kinda liked that about her. The moment would last a bit longer before Felix withdrew his hand from Bernadetta’s head, much to the displeasure of the both of them, something that they both tried to hide from the other. “Well, I’ve got to go now. Make sure not to get hurt in your exercises.” Felix said, about to turn away when he felt his hand get tugged on, prompting him to turn around.

“B-Before you go, I need to give this to you as well!” Bernie said, holding out the shield that she had been carrying the entire time, much to the surprise of the swordsman.

“...I thought you were gonna use this in your monthly mission?” He asked, taking the shield from the girl and looking at it. The thing must’ve cost a hefty amount of money for the girl since it was a fresh shield, not having a single scratch on it.

“My mission is just some training with the knights, so I don’t think I’ll need it.” She said, sighing as the heavy object was taken from her. The archer could tell it would help protect the holder from a good hit, but it was just too heavy for the girl to happily wield. “You’re going up against actual bandits...actual criminals. I just...d-didn’t like the idea of you getting hurt badly by them since I know you’re kind of a, uh, reckless fighter…” Bernadetta said, looking at the floor as she thought of the possibility of her first friend in a long time being harmed by some bandits, or even worse, killed.

Felix stayed quiet before she put his hand on her head, not rubbing her hair. Bernadetta looked up to him with somber eyes only for the sadness to drain out a bit at the sight of a rare small smile from the swordsman. “Thank you again, Bernadetta, and don’t worry about me too much. I promise you that I’ll come back safely, ok?” He said, trying to cheer the girl up, hating any moment of seeing the girl upset. “Plus, how could I die before I find a way to pay back my debt to you?”

“Y-Your debt to me?” Bernie asked, a small smile replacing her frown, the girl now in a mix of happiness from seeing a genuine smile, albeit a small one, from the taller boy, and confusion of what debt he possibly owed her.

“You’ve cooked for me on the day the Dining Hall was filled with nothing but sweets, you cooked for me again today when I forgot my food, and now you’re spending a hefty amount on a shield for me...I’m pretty sure I owe you something.” He said, rubbing her hair as he saw her mood brighten up.

“That’s just because we’re friends! Friends do favors for one another!” Bernadetta said with a big smile back on her face. “You don’t have to do anything for me.”

“Ok, then I’ll have to do a couple of ‘favors’ for you.” Felix said, not accepting all of his friend’s efforts for free. She had worked too hard just because he kept making mistakes and he was going to pay her back in one way or another.

“Fine...then the only favor you need to do for me is to make it back alive.” The short girl said, smiling lightly as she spoke. She didn’t have any concern or fear in her voice, though, knowing the swordsman would see the mission through. Besides, the Professor was there, there was no way Felix would die under her watch!

“Then I’ll fulfill that favor, no matter what.” Felix said, rubbing the girl’s hair one more time before taking his hand off of her head. “I’ve gotta go now. We were supposed to meet up in the Marketplace in five minutes, and I don’t want Sylvain to see us together when he’s looking for me.” After speaking, he turned around and started walking off, somewhat upset with having to leave the girl behind.

Bernie smiled, fully understanding the swordsman. “Ok, bye! Be safe!” She said, waving at him as he made his way through the Courtyard.

He turned around and waved back before he disappeared from her sight.

\------

Bernadetta was nowhere near a devout follower of the Goddess. The Empire’s relation with the Church had been declining, of course, and it made many of the latest generations have no belief in the Goddess. For the recluse, however, it was her father that had ruined any chance of her following Sothis. Her father, the cruelest man in all of Fodlan, was only able to get away with his crimes and his torture of her because of his stupid status as the one who inherited the Empire's Ministry of Religion. It was because of his status and her stupid Crest, a ‘blessing’ of the Goddess, that she was tied to a chair for hours. It was because of that she was beaten anytime she broke a plate. It was because of that her childhood friend was…

If it was because of this religion that she was tortured her entire life, then why was she at the Church, praying to the Goddess that gave her the cause of her torment? 

An easy answer: she was praying for Felix’s safety. The Goddess Sothis had done so much bad for her, but she was blessed with one good thing, and that was Felix. The kind, strong, gentle, and admittedly handsome young man had been willing to become her friend, cared for the girl, and made her feel a type of warmth she never felt before. Her hero, the one who teased her nearly everyday and responded to her comebacks with a simple rub to her messy hair, could possibly have his life ended. She did everything she could do to ensure otherwise, so all she could do now was pray, pray to the Goddess that blessed her horrible life with a simple ray of hope in the form of a moody teenager, pray that that ray of hope isn’t destroyed...

“...please, Sothis, keep Felix safe…”

\------

Felix sighed as he sat against the wall of the wagon, doing his best to ignore the useless conversations that floated around him. He didn’t tell them to shut up, though, as he could tell it was meant to help everyone forget that they might be moments away from death. Sure, it was highly unlikely due to the Professor being there to protect them all, but the worst outcome is always the most thought about outcome. The swordsman eyed the prince, who had a big smile plastered on his face as he spoke to Annette, who had her mouth full of what he presumed was cake at the time. He needed to do everything in his power to not only assist in making sure no bandits would kill anyone, but make sure that the boar didn’t go on a rampage as well. Memories of the boar, strangling a horrified rebel leader who had been pleading for his life, was all that filled the boy’s mind at the moment. The thought that he could strangle anyone else in this wagon if he became unhinged was…

Felix turned his head down to his food, not wanting to think of Dimitri killing all those around him any longer. Instead, he opened up the container of food that he had been withholding in the white cloth from Bernadetta. 

Sylvain had tried to interrogate him on where he could have possibly gotten the food from, but eventually dropped it when Ingrid dragged him away, not wanting Felix to get too grouchy. He turned to see Sylvain happily talking to Ingrid who was shoveling food into her mouth. He had counted three containers of food in the blonde girl’s arm, but seeing the fourth one made him smile a bit. _ “She really never did change after all of these years, huh?” _

He turned back to his own container and opened the lid, the smile on his face not wavering as he smelt the spiciness of the meal. He unwrapped it to find a few pieces of cooked fish, all neatly packed side by side. Using a fork that was also wrapped up in the white cloth, he took a chunk out of one of the fish and ate it, already falling in love with his meal. The amount of dedication put into the food was easily seen with just how delicious it was. Bernadetta was truly an excellent cook, no matter how much she tried to deny it.

The bottom of the lid of the container soon caught his eye as he ate, the Blue Lion student picking it up before reading it. 

“Please be safe out there!”  
\- Bernadetta

He read it with a smile, placing it down as he took another bite of his food. The dark-haired boy tried to blame the food for making his face suddenly feeling warm, happy that no one had noticed. Even if it was very unlikely, he couldn’t help but feel a bit happy that his friend was worried for the worst to come, the boy looking at the iron shield that rested right next to him.

_ “...I’ll make it back, Bernadetta…” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for yet another long wait for an update! I haven't been able to get myself time to work on this pic, despite the current events going around!
> 
> Anyways, I hope you all enjoy the fanfic so far, as there is sure to be more to come in the future! Have a nice day, you all!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading my first ever fanfic, and I hope you enjoyed it! I will be updating in the future, so be on the lookout for when that occurs, but until then, Arrivederci!


End file.
